“Are you crazy?” Roma legend Francesco Totti refused to hand over the number 10 to the striker
Comments from Francesco Totti's new autobiography "Oltre" reveal a sensitive detail about Paulo Dybala's transfer to Roma in the summer of 2022.
Roma wanted to give Dybala the iconic No 10 shirt, but club legend Totti stopped the move behind the scenes.
In his book, the 2006 World Cup winner says the Giallorossi hierarchy approached him indirectly to get his approval. The US ownership consortium wanted Totti to present the symbolic number to the new signing himself as part of a lavish unveiling at the Colosseo Quadrato.
Instead, Totti says he reacted with disbelief. His reply was: "Are you all crazy?" The former captain was not driven by jealousy, but by his refusal to take responsibility for a decision he had not made himself.
Which squad number did Paulo Dybala wear at Juventus Turin?
He told the officials they were free to hand over the shirt themselves: "If you have the courage, give it to him yourselves." Speaking about the player, Totti made clear how highly he regards him: "I have nothing against the player. On the contrary, I like him a lot, as a person too. He is a great guy. But I replied: If that is what you intend to do, then do it, without dragging me into it."
After moving from Juventus Turin to the Italian capital, where he had previously also worn the No 10 shirt, Dybala ultimately chose 21. He had already worn that number at the start of his time in Turin.
Totti explained: "I did not want the responsibility for the choice of a different number - a decision with which I had absolutely nothing to do - to fall on me. The No 10 at Roma carries weight and it would inevitably lead to comparisons with myself." He still rates the attacker highly on sporting grounds: "As far as I am concerned, if Dybala is fit, he can make the difference."
Francesco Totti does not want to see Roma's No 10 shirt given to a foreign player
More broadly, Totti does not want his old shirt number retired forever: "I want to express myself very clearly: I would never permanently retire the No 10 shirt at Roma. That would be like denying children a wonderful dream. Every day I hope that a new Totti emerges. Someone who is born in Rome and grows up in Rome and chooses Roma for his whole life, for eternity."
At the same time, he is wary of seeing it handed to foreign players: "It would be something else to give this shirt to someone who comes from the other side of the world, only stays for a limited time and then leaves again. It is too important and meaningful a symbol, one that should only be entrusted to someone who can potentially play for Roma for 15 or 20 years."
